The present invention relates to an improved disposable container for dispensing fluid materials and particularly to containers known as bag-in-box containers.
As is known in the art, bag-in-box containers have an outer protective shell, usually in the form of a box formed of corrugated board, paperboard or other inexpensive, yet stiff, material. An advantage of corrugated board or paperboard is that the package can be easily recycled. Contained within the protective shell is a flexible liner or bag which usually has a dispensing means, such as a spout, integrally attached and in communication with the interior of the liner. The liner or bag is protected by the protective shell and can contain any pourable fluid material that is compatible with the material used to form the liner. Typically the pouring means is licated within the protective box during shipping and can be exposed by opening the box, often by means of a punch out in one wall of the box that can be removed.
For small packages, the bag-in-box concept works quite well. However, for large size containers, the weight and bulk of the package make pouring and handling difficult. There have been numerous proposals for providing handles and hand-holds to these larger bag-in-box containers. However, these prior designs have numerous disadvantages, including manufacturing difficulty, cost and difficulty of consumer use.